


Office Raid

by savingalligators



Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Werewolves, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Bella losing her shit, Bella trying to save herself and Charlie, Drabble, Gen, Takes place immediately after her run-in with Laurent but he doesn't try to kill her, What-If, just an introspective piece on Bella during New Moon but the stakes are risen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:01:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28392075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/savingalligators/pseuds/savingalligators
Summary: In a universe where werewolves don't exist, Bella comes to learn she's at the mercy of Victoria's anger. Bella decides she absolutely will not take this lying down, however, and begins planning.
Relationships: Edward Cullen/Bella Swan (background)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	Office Raid

**Author's Note:**

> I don't write a lot of fiction/storytelling in general, so hopefully the prose feels natural. I'm much more practiced at writing argumentative essays. This drabble takes place immediately after Bella’s run in with Laurent in the meadow, but Laurent leaves her be and no werewolves interfere. He basically tells Bella Victoria is coming and there’s nothing she can do about it. Bella proceeds from there...

“Consider this a courtesy call, Isabella.” His words held a level of finality about them, and before I could respond, Laurent vanished. 

I stood there for several minutes, staring at the trees Laurent had come from in silence. A _courtesy call?_ Is _that_ what he called that? 

* * *

I raced up to Carlisle’s office, gripping the rail for support as I wound up the stairs. I couldn’t think about where I was and the memories that swarmed me. I pushed everything out of my head except the need I had to save my own life. I _needed_ there to be something in Carlisle’s office that I could use: a clue, a note, a stray ID. I knew they were too precise—too perfect—for this, but I prayed someone had forgotten something when they left. An address, a search history. 

The door to Carlisle’s office opened easily as I raced inside. I immediately went around to Carlisle’s seat, grabbing the sheets covering the desk as I went. I began tearing open drawers, sifting through papers and journals and checkbooks. 

After an hour I moved on to the computer, sitting untouched on the desk. I chose not to question why they left it here—I guess crime rates in Forks weren’t too much of a concern for them, and they could easily afford a new one—and powered it on. I logged on as a guest and began my searches. _Carlisle Masen, Carlisle Hale, Carlisle Whitlock_ , any name combination of all of them. I looked through hospital and high school directories, narrowing my searches to specific places I thought they may live. I tried everything I could think of but he was right: it was like they never existed.

After several hours, the office was a mess. I had smashed the locks on the file cabinets with a hammer, left papers on the floor, and generally not cleaned up after myself. But there was nothing to show for it; no way to find a Cullen and beg for their help. 

I sagged into the desk chair in defeat. I dimly realized I was sobbing and I must have been for some time. Loud, choking sobs that made it nearly impossible to see. My search had been frantic and dizzying and I was going to die anyway. 

_But…_ I stared at nothing, eyes unfocused, as the thought shaped itself in my head, _I could leave. Do my best to lead Victoria away from Charlie and Jacob and see how long I can escape her._

But where would I go?

I certainly didn’t have enough money saved up from Newton’s to sustain this idea. Then again I don’t think I’d have to worry about it for more than a few months before she caught up to me. No matter what I was dead, so what was I gonna do with the life I had left?

I was running through places in my head, _Alaska? Maybe I could find that “Denali” clan he mentioned once? No, I’d never get so lucky. They’re probably in the middle of nowhere and unreachable by a human. Should I leave the country? Go somewhere insanely sunny and populated? That was probably smartest._

All this was racing through my head when something caught my eye. It was the picture of Carlisle with three other vampires looking regal and stiff, left uncovered above the doorway. _The Volturi,_ I remembered. They were some kind of ruling body over vampires. Maybe I could plead my case? Blame Victoria for me knowing vampires existed? They’d kill Victoria then, but they’d probably kill me too.

After all, what reason would they have to let me live with what I knew? Maybe I could beg them to turn me. The thought was unbelievably unappealing, seeing as I’d be facing eternity entirely alone. Nothing appealed to me about being a vampire besides sharing my life with _him,_ and that wasn’t an option anymore. I guess it never had been. 

Why would they grant that request anyway? What could I possibly offer them that they couldn’t get anywhere else?

With a deep breath in I began my search anew, this time for anything Carlisle may have written about the Volturi.

Sure enough, one of his many journals, hidden under piles of bills in one of the cabinets I essentially demolished with a hammer, had exactly what I had been hoping for.
    
    
     _… Aro and I found another common interest with the phenomenon of the “gifted vampire,” though our motivations are indeed separate. He disclosed to me that he often pardons someone should their memories prove they could be of further use…_ 

As I read on, I gained more of exactly the information I needed. Aro, according to Carlisle’s journal, could read minds… maybe my silence for _him_ would extend to a silence for Aro and he’d be intrigued enough to let me live. At the very least, maybe he’d turn me into a vampire. There was also the chance he _would_ be able to read my mind, in which case I’d probably face a horrible death.

I grimaced. Most of these outcomes were certainly not what I wanted, but my hands were tied. There was no information on where the Cullens were now, and vampire problems needed vampire solutions.

But what about Charlie? How could I be sure Victoria wouldn’t kill him while I was in Italy?

He’ll have to come with me. At least to Volterra if not the actual Volturi themselves. What other option was there? Carlisle’s notes mentioned that people in Volterra weren’t ever murdered. In fact it was strictly against the “law” of the Volturi to kill within the city. If I brought Charlie with me he would have protection from Victoria, but if Aro was able to read my mind he was as good as dead.

It was the only plan I had, so it would have to do. After one more cursory look for any information on the Denali clan, which was expectedly not fruitful, I left the office in the messy state I had put it in and rushed out to my truck. Carlisle’s journal was clutched tightly in my hand. I had no idea how I was going to convince Charlie to go to Volterra with me nor how I was going to convince him that vampires existed and the Cullens happened to be a bunch of them.

As I drove, I thought about how best to approach it. If I wasn’t convincing enough he’d have me locked up for a mental break. I was coming up blank.

Lost in my thoughts as I was, I forgot to be hyper-paranoid and vigilant about my surroundings. Then again, seeing the flash of red earlier certainly wouldn’t have changed much.

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully there was enough context in the summary/tags for you to follow along! This was just a little drabble idea I had rolling around in my head so I thought I'd write it out. Does Victoria kill Bella? Does Bella convince Charlie to go to Volterra with her? What happens then? I'm not sure. Maybe if I'm inspired I'll continue this, but right now I feel like there's too many directions it could go for me to devote myself to one ending.


End file.
